Media Advisory - Today - 300 VCC students to rally at legislature with message to Amrik Virk and Christy Clark: ESL matters

VANCOUVER, Oct. 27, 2014 /CNW/ -

WHO:		More than 300 students and faculty from Vancouver Community College.
WHAT:		Following the BC government's massive cuts to ESL training at post-secondary institutions, VCC students and faculty will travel to Victoria on Monday to hold a rally on the lawn of the legislature. They will deliver a strong message to Minister of Advanced Education Amrik Virk, and to Premier Christy Clark: ESL matters to BC's economy, and to BC's future.
		VCC is the largest provider of ESL skills training in Western Canada; BC government cuts will result in more than 3,000 students being shut out of ESL classes on December 17, 2014.
WHEN & WHERE:		MONDAY OCTOBER 27, 2014
		VANCOUVER: 6:45am – Busses bound for Victoria will begin to load full of students. ESL Matters spokesperson Karen Shortt will be available for interviews at VCC's Broadway campus (outside cafeteria).
		VICTORIA: 12:00pm to 12:30pm – Students rally on the lawn of the Legislature with guest speakers. Members of the media are welcome. Karen Shortt and ESL student representatives will be available for comment.

FAST FACTS:

• For more than 40 years, Vancouver Community College has partnered with the provincial government to support skilled immigrants and Canadian citizens in obtaining the English skills they need to successfully enter the workforce. Vancouver Community College is now the largest provider of English as a Second Language training in Western Canada.
• This spring, the BC Ministry of Advanced Education announced an end to ESL funding at post-secondary institutions in British Columbia. As a result, VCC has cancelled classes and job losses have begun among ESL faculty.
• On December 17, 2014, BC government-funded ESL classes at VCC will end, leaving thousands of students with no options to complete their English-language skills training. Community-based and private schools do not have the capacity or expertise to absorb these students.
• The majority of immigrants arrive in BC as university-educated skilled workers, but more than half of skilled immigrants can't find work in their chosen field, often due to language barriers. 45% of immigrants aged 15 to 24 reported that language barriers were the most serious obstacle facing them.
• English language courses are the most sought-after type of career-oriented educational training taken by new immigrants. They are taking much more than conversational English. They are acquiring the sophisticated reading, writing and verbal interaction skills that allow them to function effectively in the modern workplace.
• ESL students are BC's future job creators. Professionally delivered ESL training provides skilled immigrants with the English-language skills they need to succeed on the job.
• Adult education is a provincial responsibility; VCC students and faculty are urging Premier Clark and Minister Virk to restore ESL training funding immediately. VCC students graduate from ESL training programs, start businesses, pay taxes, and contribute to their communities.

SOURCE: Vancouver Community College

For the media: Paul Nixey | Nixey Communications | 778.918.7285 | [email protected]; Karen Shortt | VCCFA | 604.992.1464 | [email protected]